If you want something to go viral, it can’t be about you, your company, your product, or your message. No one cares what you’re selling. They care about themselves. That’s what caused the success the Obamicon project: Upload a picture of yourself, add a your own message, and you want to share it. Show off […]

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Well word is leaking out, so I might as well tell you here: There is the new edition of my book that just hit the shelves. It’s a revised edition of Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking, with: New case studies New worksheets New chapter about BtoB word of mouth […]

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You win when people help share your work. 1> Do a group project2> Make it wearable3> Put your work on sharing sites4> Check it out: Superhydrophobic-expialidocious 1> Do a group project Group projects invoke teamwork, networking and cross-promotion. The Age of Conversation, started by Drew McLellan and Gavin Heaton, is a project in which more […]

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President Obama said: “Our challenges may be new, the instruments with which we meet them may be new, but those values upon which our success depends, honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force […]

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John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing organized Snackfest: 2009, predictions for small business from Seth Godin, Bryan John Battelle, Tim Ferris, Dan Pink, me, and many others. Read it here: Part 1 Part 2 My favorites: Seth Godin, author of Tribes said . . Run/grow/compete like mad because the big bad companies that have been […]

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1. Start the “Buffalo Local Comedy” Facebook group. 2. Become the hub of news and announcements (and the neutral player). 3. Offer to post every other artist's show in town. 4. Make it clear that there’s a friendly expectation that if you push their shows to your group members, they will do the same for […]

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In this NPR interview (text & audio here), Jane McGonigal talks about how the expertise in making games can apply to many situations. In this case, museum design. Jane talks about what we all need to be happy: Satisfying work The experience of being good at something Time spent with people we like The chance […]

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{Welcome back to the Damn, I Wish I Thought of That Email Newsletter. This is text of the great issue all of our email subscribers just received. Sign yourself up using the handy form on the left.} Talking about what a bummer the recession is these days is like honking your horn in a traffic […]

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John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing has an amazing idea: Have a Testimonial Gathering Party: Why not create an event around gathering testimonials. Invite your best customers for a networking social happy hour. Promote the event as a chance to network, swap stories and star in the creation of new marketing materials for your company. […]

I taught word of mouth marketing at Northwestern University and internet entrepreneurship at the Wharton School of Business. I’m a serial entrepreneur who founded and advises startups and nonprofits. And I’m a rabid purist on the topic of marketing ethics.

About This Blog

"Damn, I Wish I'd Thought of That!" is full of unusually useful ideas borrowed from the smartest marketers. Good marketing is more about brains than bucks. The best business ideas are easy to do, inexpensive, simple, and fun. Learn to simplify your business, earn word of mouth, and thrill your customers.